Quick Links

Club PA 2.0 has arrived! If you'd like to access some extra PA content and help support the forums, check it out at patreon.com/ClubPA

The image size limit has been raised to 1mb! Anything larger than that should be linked to. This is a HARD limit, please do not abuse it.

Our new Indie Games subforum is now open for business in G&T. Go and check it out, you might land a code for a free game. If you're developing an indie game and want to post about it, follow these directions. If you don't, he'll break your legs! Hahaha! Seriously though.

Our rules have been updated and given their own forum. Go and look at them! They are nice, and there may be new ones that you didn't know about! Hooray for rules! Hooray for The System! Hooray for Conforming!

[Poké] PKMN - Comfy And Easy To Wear

Posts

Alex sighs as he reads through the professor's message. In the meantime, the Eggs have spread out across the courtyard to look for shiny things and/or pockets.

Pidgey has fun making passers-by do a double take a the bench on top of a bench.

"Alright team, huddle up", Alex calls out, suddenly pulling his head from out of his hands.

The bench immediately starts hopping over, terrifying a nearby couple. Seemingly begrudgingly, the Eggs follow suit, syncing up with the one solo Egg that was beside Alex the entire time, looking longingly at the coins scattered about the old fountain at the center of the courtyard.

"Pidgey, you're doing a great job. Keep it up", Alex proudly says with a smile. The bench...smiles back? Alex can feel some type of warmth radiating from it, at least.
"Eggs, I think I may have been too hard on you all back at the gym. But we almost got kicked out, and that would have been terrible! We want to challenge this place, as a team! I think together, myself and yourselves, we may have a chance at, uh, making some serious money! But we can't do that if any of us get caught doing anything shady, so I propose this. Let me train you. Let's get ourselves into a couple fights. Let's see what we're made of. And if we succeed, then let's evaluate our, uh...deviousness. Let's be calculating about this, yeah? When I found you folk, it was in the functional trashcan of the city. Lookit where we are now! The sun is beautiful, the dirt is...between cobblestones. But still! Let's head back in there and pick a fight!"

The bench hops up and down with excitement at Alex's speech, and after evaluating Exeggcute's collective response, he makes his way back towards the gym.

"Oh, uhhhh... geez..." Jim blanches when he realizes he's forgotten that they speak two different languages. The language of Pokemon battles being universal, and all that. He pulls out his Pokedex and switches over to the translator function and pairs it with the text-to-voice app. "Okay, let's try this again." he says, typing in the following question:

Your Caterpie is much more powerful than the ones I've seen before. What's your secret? I need some help with my Feebas, Charlotte. She's tough, but as you could see she doesn't do much damage.

Jim waits while the translator works, then outputs the result to the text-to-voice. The Pokedex emits what Jim presumes to be a reasonable facsimile of what he's trying to communicate. Frederick thinks for a second, then copies Jim's method, and a minute later, his own Pokedex offers a reply.

"No secret, just hard work. I structure my day and training sessions with a series of goals, aiming to get a little better every day. Pay attention to the results and stick to it. The schedule is important."

Frederick pauses, enters a little more, and another response emerges.

"It is also important that you focus on nutrition. It is like my grandmama always said: the garbage goes in, and so it must come out."

The answers are less than what Jim was hoping. His attitude is much more of a... "get up there and rip it" style. After all, what's more important than passion and committing all-out? But still, the results of Frederick's training spoke for themselves. Perhaps a more scheduled and organized approach to training wouldn't be the worst thing in the world. Jim types into his Pokedex:

Thank you for the advice. I wish you the best of luck with your training, and this battle has taught me a lot. I may challenge the gym leader tomorrow, perhaps I will see you then?

Frederick listens, and types a reply.

"It was my pleasure. I also hope much luck for you and with the gym leader, and hope to see you again."

Jim offers Frederick a hearty handshake, then calls Lotty and Eli back to their balls. "Time to go, you two," he says, waving goodbye to Frederick.

On his way out, he happens to walk by Richter's battle, wincing at the damage from a particularly threatening Energy Ball. He offers North a bit of encouragement. "Go North! You can totally do it! Squash that bug but good!"

He also happens to spot a familiar Buizel running about. He offers the weasel a pat on the head. "Hey there buddy, guess Al's around here somewhere? You be careful, the trainers here are no joke. Make sure you tell Al that when you see him, huh?"

Jim approaches the woman behind the counter to schedule a match with the gym leader. "Excuse me," he begins, ringing the little metal bell to get her attention. "I'd like to battle with the gym leader tomorrow if there's time available. Perhaps late morning?"

The woman regards him with a rather harried look. It seems she's had more than her share of troublesome Pokemon to deal with today. "Wha... yes, of course. Leader battle..." she glances down at a small calendar book. "Looks like there's an opening at around ten, if that's okay?"

"Works for me, see you then!" He gives her a wink and leaves.

~ Santalune Pokecenter ~

Jim walks over to the nurse and drops off his two Pokemon for healing, secures a room for the evening (hopefully to sleep there this time), then heads for the bustling Pokemart.

He walks through the aisles, glancing at the various items. "Let's see here... no, I'm good on Pokeballs, good on Potions... huh." He notices the TM section, and stops. "Maybe something good for Lotty? She could use another move or two." Nothing draws his eye, however, until he spots a particular disc. He picks it up from the shelf and gives it a careful read. "Drench, huh? Works for me."

He stops at the food section next. "I really ought to get them both a reward for such a hard-fought battle," he muses. Then he remembers Frederick's advice. "Right, but I need to make sure they're getting healthy food too. Well, that should be simple enough." Both Litwick and Feebas are well-documented breeds and common types, so a quick peruse of his Pokedex provides him all the pertinent details on nourishing both species. Cross-referencing his newfound knowledge with the availability at this location, he settles on a few ingredients, and brings the lot up to the counter.

An utterly disinterested teenager is standing behind the counter, tending to the numerous young trainers with the sort of detachment that suggests he's been working some serious overtime. Jim waits in line patiently, then deposits his purchases on the counter for scanning.

"A bag of Fortified Fire Flakes, one box of Kelp Crackers, and a package of dried wiki berries. And one Drench TM, please."

"Uh huh," the cashier responds with the bare minimum of attention, scanning each item. "On the League?"

"That's right," Jim replies.

"Have a nice day," the young man says finally.

Jim packs the goodies into his backpack and heads up to his room to take a break while he waited for the Center to finish healing his team. He drops his backpack at the side of the bed and flops down on the fresh sheets. With nothing else to do, he plugs in his Pokedex to recharge, then starts browsing information on the local area. After all, he still has a few roles to fill in his team, one in particular. "Huh, not much to choose from in terms of Electric types. Aside from Pikachu, of course, but... eh." Suddenly, an idea pops into his head. "I wonder if Sycamore could tell me any more about getting a Pokemon with an unusual typing." He puts together a quick message to Sycamore and fires it off.

Hey Professor! Jim here. I was thinking about those Bidoof with weird types you showed us the other day. What makes them get the unusual types? Is it just parentage, or is there some other way? I need an Electric type but there's not many around here, you see. Maybe I need to be looking for an alternative to the typical Electric type?

The response comes back a few minutes later. Apparently Sycamore either really values taking time to speak to his pupils, or he's just got nothing better to do.

Hello again, Jim! There are several different ways that a Pokemon can gain an unusual typing, and it is indeed a fascinating subject! So few take the time to think about this, and I am delighted to offer you what information I can on the subject!

As you said, parentage is a common way for a Pokemon to gain an unusual second type. This is the case with most of the Bidoof in my lab. As the foremost authority on such matters, I have been able to procure a large number of rare typings of Bidoof for my research. It is not common for such parenting to occur in the wild, but nor is it unheard of. If you seek an Electric type, I would look for something with a Pikachu for a father! They are somewhat common to the forest south of here.

But there are two other documented ways that Pokemon can change to unexpected types. There is exposure to the unusual properties of rare stones, which can result in an instantaneous conversion, and may include some other effects, too! And of course, there's the adaptive response, where a Pokemon in an unusual environment may adapt itself to be better suited to said environment. Many a water-type has been born from life along the beach, as they say! Unfortunately, neither of these are likely to be of help in procuring an Electric type, which is why I advised the first method. That said, I'm sure a competent and patient trainer may find himself with an Electric companion if he or she wants, even in such a place where they might be uncommon.

If you would like further information, I would be happy to forward you a few research papers I have written on the subject. I should warn you that they are somewhat dense, but they are peer-reviewed!

Jim shudders after reading the last line. Well, perhaps they'd be good at fixing insomnia, or something, but still. "Hmm... doesn't seem like I'm likely to have much luck, then," he admits. "Well, let's think here." He reaches into his backpack and pulls out a pencil and paper. He rolls back onto his bed and presses down carefully so as not to tear the page. "So with Eli and Lotty, that's fire and water... and ghost... taken care of. Four slots left." He taps the pencil against his chin in thought. "Well, Electric for three..." He lays out the Pokedex and looks through for different Electric types. "Shinx would be cool, if it were local. Aside from that, let's see... a Dark type for sure, maybe something Dragon-y... and a Fairy type too." Jim groans and rubs his eyes. "Man, there's too many to choose from! How's a guy supposed to get the perfect team?"

He takes a deep breath. Perhaps it's better just to take things one at a time. Trying to plan out an entire team when you've only got two members probably isn't so wise. And after all, planning isn't really what he does best, Jim admits. If they head back to Lumiose, perhaps the Electric gym leader could help him. But now that he's thinking about it.... Jim remembers Frederick's advice. He should probably start working on a training regimen for the two Pokemon he has instead of daydreaming about Pokemon he doesn't. Yeah, he's got more important things to do. He flips the paper over and starts jotting down the outline of a training routine for his Pokemon.

[Jim bought one TM for Drench (Physical/Harassing(Df)/Water).]

Formed with generic input from Marsh. Speaking of, hey @Marshmallow : What style of move is Infestation? Seems pretty useful.

Infestation is a Sapping Style Move. Sapping's non-Status effect is to deal 1 Stamina damage to the target at the start of its turn for the next three turns. Using it multiple times only refreshes the duration, but it's still very useful for its +3 damage if you can wait it out, as well as the psychological pressure of having your Pokemon degrading each turn.

It's countered slightly by moves that heal Stamina, since you can easily anticipate the damage and heal accordingly, and directly countered by a Refresh Style Move, which cancels the remaining duration, among its other effects.

Richter recoils as he hears the commands issued by his counterpart.Is that fair play? I've not...
The Sewaddle looses it's glowing ball directly at North.
Scrambling out of desperation, Richter searches for a solution.
... and finds one.

"North! Heads up! Use our SECRET WEAPON!!!"

North looks around, shocked and confused. And itchy.
The Energy Ball is bearing down on him, and something about his head?
North smiles in realisation, as he removes his 'hat'.
The many glass shards atop his head twinkle as they catch the gym lights.
Turning to face the oncoming ball, North has just enough time to brace as he catches it on the flat of his head.

There is an almost audible *glint* as the large focused energy ball is diffused into a shower of small incoherent glowing beads, as the many faces of North's crystalline mohawk diffract the light in every direction.

Knowledge token spent to annul Sewaddle's attack.

As the shower clears, there is only North standing there, itchy but looking tougher than ever.

Richter pumps the air excitedly, before stretching out the offending arm across the battlefield.

"Keyanu! This guy thinks he can ignore you! Let's keep him under wraps with your chain attack!"
"And North! Regain your breath with a Barrier attack!"

~ Outside the Trainer's school ~
Beatrix finally made it to the Trainer's School. Anton said that the Officer she was investigating was questioning people here. But the fact even the energetic trainer easily deduced her intentions, she had to find other ways to stay incognito and discreet. However, a thought crossed her mind.

Hmmm, maybe I should try a different approach. Instead of constantly denying myself as an agent to avoid suspicion, maybe I should go full Tepig and embrace it? No better way to hide than being in plain sight, right? What was Shirley's attire again? Dressed in a white shirt, dark jacket, dark slacks?

She does a quick inspection of her own clothes.

Well, with the black trench-coat, I DO (sorta) stand out as a detective. Hmm... that gives me an idea...

Pulling out a pair of reading glasses, she places it on her face, completing her 'disguise'. All I need to do now is to remain as deadpan serious as possible. That, and an alias...

After a few moments, she looks back at the school, a determined smile forming on her lips.

Beatrix may be standing outside, but the moment she takes a step into school grounds, she’ll be replaced with… umm… Abby… errrr… Stone! Yeah! Abby Stone! Personal Assistant to one Officer Shirley!

"What do you think, Moriarty? Abby Stone at your service! Great disguise, amirite?" She grins. Moriarty just takes a look at Beatrix, before shaking his head. He crows with disappointment.

Sure, you'll fool EVERYONE with that! Let's just get this over with. Maybe I'll be lucky and nab a kid or two's snack.

Confident, she makes her way into the school grounds proper.

This'll be perfect. What could go wrong?

~ Trainer's School ~
Walking with the grace of a determined officer of the law, Beatrix weaves through the groups of school kids and novice trainers. She keeps her ears open for any gossip or rumors regarding Shirley, or any news on a strange, auburn haired woman.

"Keep your eyes open for anything suspicious, Moriarty." She whispers at the Murkrow perched on her shoulder. The Murkrow responds with a mock salute.

Beatrix is gonna keep her ears open regarding anything about her investigation. If she doesn't find anything of interest, she'll make her way to the Visitor's Center.

No one sees fit to bother Beatrix as she approaches in her disguise, nor when she wanders purposefully on the grounds. It seems like most of the children present are excited about the start of the League Challenge, using their phones to compare apps that track the released data of their favorite celebrity challengers, Gym Leaders, and maybe a sibling or parent participating.

None of it seems really applicable to her quest to seek info on the illusive Shirley, though Beatrix could probably learn an awful lot about public hype and perception over the battlers and battles that have happened, or are upcoming soon.

Maybe, perhaps even purposefully, rumors of a mostly non-descript woman asking official but vague questions aren't likely to be the talk of the schoolyard when Gym Battles are happening several times a day. The Junior Detective could try to get a little more nosy, or just hope to get lucky, but for now the passive observation method of deduction doesn't seem to be doing her much good.

~ Santalune Gym ~Aleksandr

The youngster takes in the Ace Trainer's comments and advice with a stern expression and impatiently crossed arms, but Aleksandr can see wheels beginning to turn rather fast behind the mask she's presenting. Which in itself is a little disconcerting coming from someone half his height, and probably somewhere in the vicinity of half his age.

"You're talking about compromise," she says, mildly accusing. "You already have two Pokemon pulling your gameplan, your approach, your style in different directions. Do you think that method will hold when you have four Pokemon? Six Pokemon? Very ambitious." She gives Aleksandr a look. "Perhaps overly so."

The Phantump, for its part, continues hovering blithely, full of innocence and frivolity.

Accepting the Ace Trainer's proferred hand, she curtsies rather than shakes. "Alas, no. I'm here on business with my father. The Gym is as good as any a place to watch other trainers and learn from them, or challenge them and learn more directly. I'm 3-0 at the moment, but then I've only been here two days."

~ Courtyard (Santalune City) ~Alex

Evaluating the Exeggcute's response, Alex figures that if they aren't getting the exact message he's selling, they can at least pick up that he's not happy about what they did, so maybe he can hope they'll be more circumspect about their behavior in the near future, or at least they'll be watching him more closely for signs of displeasure rather than doing their own thing willy nilly.

Probably the best he can hope for, considering.

Should he go back inside the Gym, the secretary will note his presence, and go back to her work. Not exactly a glare, but not exactly welcoming either.

Despite her hesitation, the Venipede responds quickly, leaping forward to spit a purple dart at the badly wounded North. The projectile shatters on impact against the Alolan Geodude's tough shell, but the poisonous splotch it leaves seem to seep into the cracks of his armor. It would slow the Rock Pokemon down, but it seems like he really can't any slower than he already is.

Utterly enraged by just about everything that's gone on thus far, the Klefki eagerly responds to Richter's encouragement to once again slather its opponent in a harmful coating of fairy chains. The spectral motes left behind in the aftermath of its light-based attack seem just as helpful here as they did in the battle where the Mad Scientist caught it, throwing in their residual energy to increase the harm dealt to the captive Sewaddle.

Restrained, but still able to call upon its ability to attack, the Bug Type struggles against its bindings to fling another orb of energy, this time at the closer target presented by the nearby Keyanu. The green ball smashes against the violently jingling Fairy Type, but while Keyanu may not be benefiting from the curious effects of North's crystal growths, it at least is slightly more energy-resistant by default, and much less wounded, and so manages to shrug off the attack without much trouble.

Sewaddle used Energy Ball!
Keyanu took 2 damage!

Richter's opponent nods a fraction to herself. "Better than nothing," she murmurs.

Ignoring the effects of the Poison Sting, North is nevertheless still bothered by the clinging bugs that are making his life mildly uncomfortable with their crawling and biting. They're already beginning to fade by the dozen, so hopefully he won't have to put up with it much longer...

North took 1 Damage from his Infestation!(1 turn remains)

Charging his barrier helps things along, as the strong field of electricity manages to ward off the circling Venipede to a slightly safer distance, as well as cooking away some of the weaker mites still infesting him into harmless dust. The jolt of stamina also does the badly weakened Geodude some good, though he'll need more than that to close this battle out unfainted.

GM Logic Explanation: Generally I'm not going to go too far outside the bounds of battle mechanics (yet anyway), so you're unlikely to completely dodge or remove the effect of an enemy move with just one token.

Richter's reveal was clever though, and operated with a small amount of prior foreshadowing with the crystals (people who've kept up with Medivoltage might recognize the term 'Support' for that sort of thing) so in addition to the typical damage reduction, I decided to throw in some non-mechanical benefit in the form of concealing the Energy Ball's Effectiveness against North, giving his opponent bad data to draw conclusions from.

Also I like the idea that a Mad Scientist experimenting on their Pokemon makes them difficult for more traditional trainers to understand and properly counter.

Richter's enthusiasm is dampened somewhat as he reassesses the battle.
Despite deflecting most of the energy, North's crystals are still effusing a slight green glow.We need to get those polished; improve the reflectivity... as well as the static generation
And, the once strong Pokémon looks like he's running down.

Meanwhile Keyanu's opponent looks just as bad.

I don't want North to faint, but even if he did Keyanu could probably take the other Pokémon...

North is roused from his lethargy by shouting from the sidelines:"North! Just hold on a bit longer! Keep using Barrier on the red bug! You can do it! You're a rock! Nothing can hurt a rock!"
Richter's unsure of what exactly is pouring out of his mouth.
Hopefully something inspiring."Just hold on for a little longer and then get Keyanu to clean up!
Keyanu! You've got him now! Hit him with your fairy fire!"

Keyanu considers the inflections in the previous order suspiciously.
Something was up with those orders.
But the target in front of him is still worthy of his rage for now.

He doesn't notice his Froakie bracelet slowly start sliding sideways.

So here's how Richter has it planned out:
North is going to cop a Venipede attack and an Infestation click this turn.
Richter wants to spend two Voltage to inspire North to hang on long enough to attack with Barrier before the infestation click occurs, making him go likely 2 - 1 - 2 - 1 rather than 2 - 1 - 0 and fainting before he gets to use Barrier.

Richter also wants to not let Venipede have a second attack against North, because that would faint him.
So he wants to spend his last Voltage or Knowledge token to activate North's Magnetism feature to force Keyanu to cover him from any second Venipede attack.
As North acts last, that pull would happen at the end of this next round, and before Venipede acts at the top of round for the round after.

"Yes, compromise. Finding common ground, and seeing who works together well." He indicates Volnoy, then taps the dustcloud-decaled Pokeball on his belt that houses Borzoi. "One has immense strength, but lacks discipline. The other has strength AND discipline, but wishes to test themselves against the sheer power of the other. I think they are good for each other," he concludes.

The Sinnoh youth tips his head in response to the curtsey, then stands up with a long stretch, first one arm, then the other pulled behind his head to work the kinks out. "Undefeated in two days is impressive. You have type advantage over me, but I would be willing to see if I could be your fourth victory." He grins, amiably. "Both Volnoy and Borzoi have trouble with Grass types."

It's a few hours later when Jim gets the page that his Pokemon are healed. He carefully folds the sheet of paper and stuffs it into his pocket for later. It's... mostly drawings of Lotty and Eli shooting lasers at a Rayquaza. But there's a few notes there that would probably maybe be helpful. He scrambles downstairs to where the nurse is waiting with a pair of Pokeballs. He takes them from her, mutters a quick "Thanks, ma'am," and dashes back upstairs. Safely in his cubicle again, he lets both Pokemon out. Lotty flops damply onto the floor, while Eli, aware of the amount of flammable material in the room, completely extinguishes his flame and sits down on the edge of the bed. Jim takes a seat next to him.

"You guys did an amazing job, and I'm so proud of you!" Jim starts. "Especially for it being your first double battle! It's made me really sure that we're only going to get better and better from here." He takes a deep breath. "But that doesn't mean we can let up. I think we all learned a lot from that battle and I'd like us to spend some time tonight thinking about that and where we can go from here." He slides down to the floor so that he can speak with them more directly. "So for the battle tomorrow, here's where I think we need to be. Eli, your flames really tore it up out there. But you still don't have the level of control we need yet. That's to say, when we battle the gym leader tomorrow, you're going to be my offensive force. We're going to have you burn down your target as fast as possible. I think your new move will help with that, too." He turns to the Feebas. "Lotty, that means you're on defense. Eli isn't tough enough to be able to handle two Pokemon at the same time, but you? You're tough. You totally can. So tomorrow, I'm going to focus you on keeping one or both of the Leader's Pokemon distracted while Eli does his work." He sighs. "I know it's not really glamorous or anything, Lotty, but it is really important. I've got a rule on this team. We all play to our strengths." He gently pats Lotty's dorsal fin. "But that's not to say that you won't be going on the offense at all, either. It's... uhh... it's like that thing Al said, the thing about learning from each other's strengths and weaknesses. 'Cause if Eli gets tripped up, then it'll be up to you to clean up, just like if something happens to you, Eli needs to be able to take a hit. That's something we learned the hard way today."

Lotty responds with a rather mercurial "Fee..." which Jim decides to take as a good sign. Eli, meanwhile, jumps into the air in excitement. Evidently the pep talk had its intended effect on him, at least.

"Okay then," Jim continues. "Now I've spent last few hours coming up with some stuff for us to work on tonight. I think rather than drilling ourselves into the ground and being exhausted tomorrow, it's probably better if we reflect on today's battle and see where that gets us. We'll do a little warming up before the match tomorrow, of course." He pulls out Lotty's Pokeball and recalls her. "Gonna start with you, buddy," he tells Eli.

~ Elijah's Training Montage ~

Jim climbs back up onto his bed, and Eli hops to the floor. "Now, there's a lot of flammable stuff in this room, and we don't want to set off any fire alarms. But tonight we're going to work on flame control. You're going to have to stay good and calm or we'll get in trouble."

"Wii..." Eli mutters despondently.

"I know, I thought we were past this too. But it's not a big deal. We all screw up sometimes, Eli. It just means we keep at it, that's all. When you get a little more accustomed to battle, you won't lose control like that any more," Jim says reassuringly.

Eli nods sadly, his flame flickering on ever so slightly.

"Okay, now let's try like how we used to do, Eli. Make a little flame in your hand, no bigger than a 10c piece."

Eli holds out his minute hand without complaint, and a purple spark grows to a match-sized flame.

"Good," Jim replies. "Now just a bit bigger, hold it, then bring it back down, same size."

The coaching goes on for the better part of an hour. Eli, transparently miserable, grows ever more bored with the repeated exercises in manipulating flames. Jim grimaces.

"I know this isn't any fun, Eli," Jim commiserates. "And I'm sorry about that. But the basics are the basics for a reason. Until we've mastered them, we can't move on to more advanced stuff." He sighs. "Okay, that's enough for tonight."

Eli looks up at him with relief, then drifts down to the floor, waiting for the next task.

"So Eli, that thing you did today, with the shadows. Do you think you could do that again? I know you like being as insubstantial as possible for maximum spookage, but in the middle of a fight, you've got to have a little more to yourself... know what I mean?"

Eli nods, and floats into the air. Once again he draws shadows from around the room, gathering them into himself, and his glim shape gains solidness, corporeality. When he lands back on the ground, there is an audible plop that Eli hasn't ever had the mass to make before.

"Hey, cool!" Jim responds, poking an index finger at his friend. The finger passes into Eli, but not without significant resistance, almost like jelly or gelatin. The phantom wax oozes down around his finger rather than through it. "Hey man, that's a big change!" He withdraws the finger and the wax reshapes itself back into place. "Nice job! Can you do any more?"

Eli shakes his head, and Jim pulls out his Dex to look up some more information. He pokes around for a minute before finding his answer. "Huh, says here it takes a lot of effort for incorporeal Pokemon to shift phase. I guess you're at your limit for now," he reasons. "Still, you're a lot more solid than you were when we started that battle. I'll wager no bug is going to bring you down easy any more."

"Lii!" Eli's smile suggests that he's happy to be succeeding at something again. Jim pulls out his Pokeball.

"We got a lot of good work done today, little man. You take a rest, and I'll have a nice talk with Lotty, okay?"

Jim calls out Lotty and empties a pile of matchsticks onto the floor next to her. "I thought you might like to do something creative tonight," Jim says comfortingly. "Don't worry, I'm not an arsonist or anything," he says with a chuckle, "They're just leftovers from training Eli back in the day." He pushes them over to Lotty and helps her arrange them into whatever interesting patterns she likes. "I know it'd be easier in a pond or something, but these'd float there... plus I think it'd be good for you to get better at moving around on land." As she pushes around the sticks into an increasingly ornate pattern, he takes out a brush and starts grooming her scales. "Got to make sure you look your best tomorrow," he explains.

"Fee." It's either vaguely pleased or distracted... Jim can't tell which. Either way, Lotty seems to be paying equal attention to him as to her project.

"So, Lotty," he begins casually, "I think that battle really showed off how strong your tail is. When we fight tomorrow, let's put some more of those muscles into your attacks. I think it'll really help you get some extra damage in. Frankly, you've got the defense thing so well down I don't see much need in working on it," he admits, reaching into his backpack. "But I think a little bit of help with your attacking might be a good thing," he explains, pulling the Drench TM from the pack. "With that in mind, I think this move would help you a lot. Would you like me to teach it to you?"

Lotty turns her head to look at him. "Bas."

"I'll take that as a... yes?"

Lotty rolls over onto her side, using a fin to beckon Jim directly.

"Okay then." Jim slides the disc into his Pokedex and loads the program. "So, looks like the way this works is you blast the enemy with a spray of water. The force of the spray hits the target, and since it's now sopping wet, it gets bogged down in pruny skin and wet fur and can't block hits as well."

Lotty maneuvers her fins into a shrug.

"I guess you've never learned a TM before. This'll be a new experience for the both of us, huh? Well, you ready?" Jim asks.

Lotty nods.

"Here goes nothing." Jim presses the button on the Pokedex and a quick, painless zap rips through the air between the gadget and the Feebas, startling him. "Woah!" Jim blinks. "Oh...kay. Do you feel any different?"

"Fee!" Lotty gasps once, and then a generous blast of ice-cold water hits Jim square in the face, knocking him to the ground on his back.

Jim carefully pushes himself into a seated position, using his hand to wipe away a face full of wet hair. "I'll take that as a yes," he sputters. "I... need a change of clothes. And a shower."

"Bas."

[Lotty spends 4 EXP to increase AT and SA to 2 each, plus 1 more EXP to learn Drench!]

~ Trainer's School ~
Though she would love to hang out with these kids and gather more information on the League (and maybe even swap some Unovan stories for some of their Kalosian ones), the young detective knew she had a mission to complete. Don’t want to mess up on the first day, she kept repeating to herself, now nearly becoming another mantra inside her head.

Not that she didn’t think of the League itself or the passionate views of these kids had of it any lesser. She just reminds herself that the League is still a means to an end. That in the end, whether she becomes the Champion or not, it’s her method to enter the world of Interpol in her own way.

With Moriarty perched on her shoulder, she strides into the Trainer’s school, following the signs and making her way to the Visitor’s centre proper.

Still, she made a mental note to someday return to the schoolyard. If she had some free time tomorrow (maybe after the gym battle?), visiting the Trainer’s school and gathering intelligence could prove rewarding. Both for herself, and for her fellow trainers. Otherwise, she could always point the others towards it. Who knows, maybe it could give her compatriots a headstart on attaining their own fame in the League.

Frowning slightly at the way the battle's going, Richter's opponent gives another set of clipped commands.

"Barb, re-Infest. So-so, same again."

Shivering free another cloud of angry insects from its plated bulk, the Venipede sends a heaping swarm of reinforcements to bolster the diminished forces of lingering mites attacking North.

Venipede used Infestation!
North took 1 Damage!
North was Infested!

Apprehensions aside, the Klefki obeys Richter with a jingle that sounds only a little annoyed, charging up and subsequently letting loose a second beam of coherent light to smash into its weakened foe.

Scorched by the attack like an unfortunate insect targeted by the focused light of a magnifying lens, the Sewaddle crumples the floor, its leaf-like adornments frayed and burned. With a sharp tsk, its trainers raises a Pokeball and returns it.

Sewaddle fainted!

The renewed horde of crawlers continue their scorched earth campaign on the hapless North, biting and stinging at the sensitive parts that his armor doesn't quite cover sufficiently to keep out the tiny invaders.

North took 1 Damage from his Infestation!(2 turns remain)

On his last (figurative) legs, the Alolan Geodude threatens to fall under the relentless attack, but the words of inspiration from his trainer steel the Pokemon. Unwilling to fail Richter when it counts, to disappoint his easy source of static electricity, North makes the difficult choice to (figuratively) stand his ground, and not let the tempting darkness take him just yet.

Voltage Token Spent!
North Endured the hit!

Forcing himself to carry on despite heavy damage, North puts everything he has into reinforcing his failing barrier of Electricity, drawing deep from wells of strength he never quite got around to plumbing in the course of his prior, easygoing, existence.

North used Barrier!
Venipede took 1 Damage!
North's HP Rose!

Its incessant, angry jingling momentarily stifled as its metallic trifles are drawn tight against one side of the 'keychain' of its body, Keyanu gives a peep of alarm as it's drawn inexorably across the room towards the sparking North.

Calling it one Voltage to endure the hit. Much like Protect, don't expect that to work too many times in a row (in later battles anyway, I think Richter's got this).

Roger roger on the [Magnetism] use. Either Voltage or Knowledge token will work, as you prefer. Should go as intended, and good job on working out another damn fine trick. I don't know if I should be worried you have even more to throw at the Gym Leader when it comes to it.

"I have rather a lot of advantages," she says, coolly. "I'd be willing to give up quite a few of them if it meant reining my Pokemon in sufficiently." Something about that notion causes her to pause and think a moment, then a chilly smile cracks through her mask of indifference.

The Phantump meanwhile, is hovering in place, looking just a bit spooked, its glowing eyes flicking back and forth between the two trainers.

"If that was intended to be a challenge, I would accept," she says. "My name is Samantha. The Arena is this way," she adds, gesturing towards the door at the back of the room.

~ Visitor's Center (Trainer's School) ~Beatrix

Pulling open the door and stepping into the Visitor's Center, Beatrix finds it to be a rather small and unassuming room compared to the building its set into. Just an area with a few chairs for waiting parents or students, a small table with old issues of Groomer's Monthly and a few trashy tabloids that assert in large block letters that Champions are Just Like Us.

The business corner of the room features a desk manned by an old, tired gentlemen with glasses featuring a length of colorful string to presumably stop them from falling or getting misplaced. Tucked into a corner of the table is a grey and brown Pokemon that looks rabbit-like, apparently sleeping on its back. Large ears wrapped over its torso serve as a makeshift comforter, and an upraised leg kicks softly at the air every now and then in response to whatever the Bunnelby is dreaming about.

"Hello," the man at desk says softly, looking Beatrix up and down. "Are you here to pick someone up?"

Aleksandr nods towards Volnoy, then points towards the Phantump with a shrug of his shoulder. Volnoy takes a few steps closer to the spooked spook, and leans in for a closer look, with a predatory grin on his face. His trainer responds with a shake of his head, and a sigh.

"Lead on, Samantha," he says, following her direction towards the arena. He's smiling on the way, however. Volnoy thumps his chest, then adds to the line, tagging along at the Sinnoh trainer's heel.

The tabloids were the first thing that caught Beatrix's attention. It was something young Beatrix would look at from time to time. Well, the pictures... mostly. But as she grew up she started to sift through the 'trashy' part of tabloids, reading all the stories that caught her inquisitive attention.

I mean, seriously, who cares about some sordid affair with a couple from some region? Or the names of some famous couple's kids and their intricate meanings. I wanna read the crazy ideas and conspiracies people cook up! Like that crazy dockworker who fooled people thinking there was a legendary Pokemon hiding underneath his van in the Kanto region! Or that one where a group of people believed the world was a simulation, and theorized the world would 'crash' if items were duplicated infinitely via a 'glitch' in the Computer Storage System! Or the couple who swear they were probed by Elgeyems in the wild one night! Or that one where...

Moriarty squawks into Bea's ear to snap her back to reality.

Oh right! The investigation!

She straightens out and makes her way to the help desk.

"Hello," the man at desk says softly, looking Beatrix up and down. "Are you here to pick someone up?"

"Not exactly. More of a someTHING really." The young woman responds. "Apologies. Miss Abby Stone at your service. Personal Assistant to one Officer Shirley."
She lowers her glasses.

"She has been here at the premises for the past few days, questioning the… 'locals' as she calls them. I know, not a term I'm happy with. But as an assistant, what can you do about it. Regardless, since she’s leaving town soon, she’s assigned me to... reaffirm and take notes on her investigations here at the school. Record keeping, if you will. Information is such a ... sensitive matter in today's world, you know? Normally she would use a simple PDA for such matters. Thanks to modern technology though, such implements become outdated... and shall we say...easily infiltrated. Hence why I am here."

She makes a note to scan the strange rabbit like Pokemon once she sets out. For now though, she prepares herself, awaiting the man's response. Moriarty, meanwhile, keeps an eye on the Bunnelby, wondering if the rabbit like Pokemon has the right idea. This was too boring for him, and there was a town's worth of delicious food just outside his grasp.

Richter breathes heavily.
Things were resolving... satisfactorily.
North wasn't as much a rock wall as was predicted.
But it still looked like we could wrap this up.

Keyanu! Finish off this bug with your light attack!
And North.. use Barrier I guess.

Keyanu chirps shrilly as North drags him across the floor.
North strains as he moves Keyanu to intercept the Venipede.
Keyanu spins around, angry at the puppetry.
Giving a final thumbs up, North curls up behind the flying keyring, shivering as he tries to fight off his infestation.

Yeah. At least this week anyway. Mostly available between 9am and 2am Mountain/Pacific, what with working nights. Family should be gone either today or tomorrow so I can actually get stuff done around here.

The Phantump replies to Volnoy's antics with a poker face, glowing pupils growing larger in the confines of its stump-like head. Then they grow smaller. Then they proceed to grow and shrink independently of one another for a few moments, the effect coming off somewhat like eyebrow wiggling.

The two trainers and their Pokemon head to the far hallway. In their wake, a few of the more bored looking trainers exchange glances, then wordless gather their own things and Pokemon to follow after the departing Aleksandr and Samantha.

Allowing the young girl to take the lead, Aleksandr follows her down the long hallway and into the massive room beyond. Looking like it must take up probably a good quarter of the available space in the Gym, the center of the room is dominated by a raised concrete Pokemon arena, while to the sides are rows of seating, currently occupied by only a smattering of audience, either left over from a match that concluded earlier, or anticipating a scheduled battle yet to come. Few of them take any notice of the two recent arrivals.

Stepping up to a man in League Referee attire, Samantha addresses him with chilly formality. "I'll be battling now. Please set us up, if you would."

"Certainly, Miss Samantha. Will we be broadcasting this match?" the referee replies politely.

"I think not. This is an unofficial battle. It might get messy." Brushing past the man, she starts walking to the right side of the arena, the Phantump, Hora, hovering backwards close behind her. Making sure it has their attention, it gives the Buizel and Ace Trainer another dose of "eye wiggling" as it does.

"As you wish, Mademoiselle," the referee says as she sweeps past, before turning to look Aleksandr up and down. "Good day, sir, do you have any preferences for arena structure?" He looks askance at Volnoy. "Perhaps a water feature or two?"

~ Visitor's Center (Trainer's School) ~Beatrix

The man frowns in recollection. "I think I recall the lady in question," he replies, hesitantly. While Beatrix continues her fast talking, he takes a moment to pull an entry ledger onto his desk, flipping to the last marked page.

"Oh yes," he continues, more confidently. "She was here twice. Three days ago, and then again yesterday. Didn't stay long at all..." The man looks over his glasses at Beatrix. "Nothing about notes or admittance for an Abby Stone, I'm afraid. Perhaps the requisition wasn't properly filed..." he glances at the ledger once more, leaning in. "Ah, we do have a contact number for the Officer in question. Perhaps I can call her to confirm any arrangements and save you the trouble of filling out more paperwork?" he asks, with a helpful smile.

~ Training Room (Santalune Gym) ~Richter

"Barb!" Richter's opponent calls out before hesitating. "Try your Tackle! Hard as you can!" she finally calls out, not sounding very confident about it.

Setting its multiple feet, the Venipede pushes off in an all-out charge towards North. With a resounding shriek however, Keyanu is forcibly drawn into the fray as well as into the path of the stampeding Centipede Pokemon. The Poison and Steel Types impact with the muffled thud of denting chitin and a myriad of angry jingling noises.

Venipede used Tackle!
Keyanu took 1 Damage!

Stumbling free of each other, the two Pokemon face off in confusion for a few moments before Keyanu breaks it off with the expedient solution of pouring out yet more white-hot light onto the source of his ire. Less resilient against this type of attack even before the lingering effects of the Klefki's Flash Cannon can come into play, the Venipede's hardy shell scuffs and darkens under the onslaught of light.

Still playing host to his unwelcome guests, the infesting swarm continue to wear out their welcome on North.

North took 1 Damage from his Infestation!(1 turn remain)

Summoning up yet more power from within to bolster and restore the integrity of his crackling, electrical shield, the Alolan Geodude buys himself another round of consciousness.

North used Barrier!
Venipede took 1 Damage!
North's HP Rose!

Pursing her lips and considering the state of the battle, it quickly looks like Richter's opponent comes to her disappointing conclusion. Raising a Pokeball in hand, she returns the outnumbered Venipede in a flash of red light, the swarm of motes attacking North immediately disintegrating into dust.

"Nothing doing. I concede," she calls over to the Mad Scientist. "Good battle."

"A little water could be nice," Aleksandr assents, exchanging a glance with Volnoy. He raises an eyebrow in question, Volnoy shrugs, and punches a small orange fist into a small orange palm. "You're at a type disadvantage, remember," he says quietly, switching to his native tongue for a moment. "You have two choices - the more obvious Dark move, or the perhaps less expected Ice attack. Use one, brace for impact on the return hit, then finish them with the other, if the first isn't as effective as you think it should be," he suggests.

Volnoy replies by flashing his teeth in a determined grin, then turns towards the Phantump. He gives a thumbs up, then raises one yellow eyebrow as his twin tails thump the ground once. He's working himself up.

"You're well known here," the Sinnoh youth calls towards Samantha. "They broadcast your previous battles, that's encouraging!" He then brings an arm behind his back, and shows Volnoy four fingers, then five, while waiting patiently for the arena to be set up.

“I can assure you, you will not find my name in that ledger. I was not with her during her investigations here at this…school. I was busy at the outlying Routes, maintaining Officer Shirley’s investigations… questioning the local… trainers regarding any suspicious… characters.”

There was some truth to her makeshift lies. She DID question that eccentric trainer Anton, after all…

Wait… did he just say she visited the premises…TWICE? The first one being… three days ago? But but… the Director only received the tip last night! That meant, at the very least, the agent has been in town for three days… without Emma’s knowledge!

This raises further questions within Beatrix’s mind.

Why did the agent return to the school? Either she was continuing her enquiries with the staff and students that day, or she was returning for a specific person or group, to reaffirm her queries.

"This session needn't be a long one. Just need a few things to keep track of: Confirmation of her being here (which your filing system has done a good job of), reasons for visiting your school during those two days, which staff members and/or students she was talking to, as well as the discussed topics to said members of your school. This should not take more than an hour of your time, maybe not even half an hour."

She glances at the man's phone. “As for the phone call, that will not be necessary, I can assure you…once more. Officer Shirley’s day has been… difficult… enough as is, and she would not have sent her assistant to gather information for her if it meant her current activities would be… disturbed. Besides… I will say this as a… suggestion… to a senior citizen such as yourself. To quote that infamous cliché, you would not want to be on Officer Shirley’s bad side. Trust me, as her assistant, I should know. I am still reeling from the… haranguing I received for not bringing her coffee in time this morning. The life of an assistant is not a glamorous one, but someone has to do it, I suppose.”

“Oh, that reminds me." She pulls out her Xtranseiver. "Standard Interpol procedures. Just need to verify her number in order to make sure it is the correct one. Just to make sure the requisition was properly filed, of course. Would you be so kind so as to repeat the number in question?” Every shred of information helped. Maybe Director Emma might find some use with it.

Moriarty, in the meantime, jumped off Beatrix’s shoulder and landed on the ground. He was casually strutting around the floor, looking for anything delicious to eat. Maybe this old codger has some mints lying around. Or maybe that lazy bum of a Pokemon knows where he keeps it. As much as it was playing along with Beatrix's ruse, the Murkrow's patience could only stretch so far before it snaps.

"North!"
Richter races over to the far side of the field, where North lies still shivering from the barrage of lice.
Picking up the inert rock Pokémon, Richter quickly running his wool cloth along North's iron crests.

Keyanu, meanwhile, is doing his best whirling dervish impression at the opposing trainer.
It is not clear whether this is meant as a victory dance, an expression of defiance, or simply because he's run out of other opponents.

Richter relaxes as North starts to produce a low rumble.
He'll be okay.
Looking down, Richter notices the knotted bandage North dropped before.
That particular piece of cloth isn't going to be much use to anyone anymore.
The spires of glass have braided most of it into large lumps, leaving large gaps in the fabric.

The chirps and rattles of his other Pokémon reminds him."Ah! Yes! Good battle! It was very close Miss.. ", Richter stops for a moment."Sorry, I don't believe we ever introduced ourselves."
Toting his purring Pokémon, Richter offers a hand to his adversary, "I'm Richter: Scientist!"

Glancing down, Richter quickly swaps the wool cloth into the other hand, and then reattempts the handshake.

I'm just gonna skip ahead to tomorrow morning I guess, time paradoxen and such. Marsh, does sleeping restore Jim's Voltage or is it only recovered post downtime?

~ Santalune Gym (Day 2) ~

Jim arrives at the gym early the next morning. After all, he's got work to do, and a badge to win! Very important things probably happening today! Sure, it's only his third battle, but he's... like... super prepped! Lotty and Eli are pep talk'd, his hair is clean and combed, and his clothes... hrm. Rather humdrum, actually. Well, perhaps it's for the best. Maybe once he's got a few badges on his sleeve, he can buy a sweet coat or something suitably badass. Maybe some cool-guy shades or a... what's a good looking hat for a cool dude? Alola's crazy for the trilby of course, but what's popular here? Then again, maybe it's better to be distinctive and go with the style of hat from his own home... or even an entirely different hat! Maybe he could make one with a little purple flame on top to look like a Litwick! His shoulders drop. No, that's too silly!

He shakes his head to clear out the crowded thoughts. Never mind all that ridiculousness! Time to get to work! Jim checks his watch. 9:00 AM. An hour to go. He looks into the crowd, carefully spotting the most susceptible targets. Excitable kids. Junior trainers. Gossiping gym trainers. He passes by them all.

"That new challenger sounds incredible!"

"Fantastic gym battle at ten!"

"I heard he's got a cool mysterious backstory!"

"He's very handsome, and crazy-strong!"

"I heard he fights with the passion of a thousand Rapidash!"

"If he's crazy enough to use a Feebas, he must be a master!"

"This battle at ten is going to be incredible!"

He plants the seeds, which he realizes would be a more apt metaphor if he had a Grass-type Pokemon. He... tests the waters? Stokes the flames! Yeah! He totally stokes the flames! With these few rumors about in the hands of the ones most likely to spread them, there's bound to be quite the crowd at his match. Everyone's going to be there! And they'll all witness the first step on his path to greatness! Just one more thing. He flips open his Pokedex and taps out a message to his fellow trainers.

Hey guys, gonna be battling the Gym Leader at ten! Be there or you'll miss me becoming Jim Leader!

Jim tags [Network] to try and maximize the crowd at his gym battle.

I don't really have a reason for drawing a big crowd, it just seemed like a fun thing to do. No small wins or losses for Jim, this is gonna be either a massive success or a total catastrophe. Are these things often televised? Because if so then Jim needs to make sure his match is. And he needs to page Sycamore to make sure everyone back at the Lab is watching too.

I couldn't tell, really. If it seemed terse, I thought you were just doing what I do and getting something, anything at all, posted to get past a block.

I've forbidden myself from drinking and posting, which might explain why it takes a week for me to cobble a post together...

~ Training Room (Santalune Gym) ~Richter

Keyanu's antics don't merit much of a reaction from the Mad Scientist's opponent. Either she's got good nerves, or she's assuming Richter has a stronger handle on this Pokemon than he actually does.

The Klefki seems more interested in making noise for noise's sake at the moment, however, so all is well. The battle seems have proven the angry Fairy Type can be channeled along more constructive ends to calm it down (if you count taking out their wrath on opponents instead of its teammates to be constructive, and 'calmed down' to mean just making a lot of noise, anyway).

"Deb, aspiring Ace Trainer," Richter's opponent replies, reaching past his outstretched hand to tug at the sleeve of his lab coat. "Not exactly bucking the stereotype, are you?" She then accepts his hand and gives a firm, confident handshake.

"Sorry about the Infestation thing. Training Bug Types, you have to work with what you get. Can be a little ugly." She gestures at North. "Never heard of a Geodude not being weak to Grass, though. I'm guessing Water wouldn't have worked any better?"

"All the Main Arena battles are recorded," Samantha calls back over her shoulder. "I don't think mine have been very exciting so far," she adds, darkly.

From the look of the few trainers who followed from the foyer, stepping into the room and making their way to the seating at either side, she might be selling herself a bit short.

Any further discussion is drowned out by a hydraulic roar as the machinery within the field, commanded by the referee in a corner of the room, comes to life. With a metallic whine, concrete pillars thrust themselves out of the center of the arena, several closely spaced enough to create a wall against the back of the room, while several others remain relatively solitary. With a gurgle, water begins to gush from the 'cliff' that just formed, making a cloud of mist as it fills the depressions created in the middle of the field.

Devices along the edge of the roof come online with a flash, the projectors painting the arena with basic holograms to conceal the bare concrete of the actual structure, the false cliff taking on a slightly cartoonish appearance of a real one, craggy with rocks and speckled with hardy weeds. The solitary, scattered pillars slowly appear to extrude a bark surface, and the illusion of canopied branches sprout across the ceiling. The collecting basin of water requires little in the way of further elaboration, but the surface darkens, allowing the pool to look murky, its edges muddy.

A very reasonable facsimile of a half-flooded forest, with a cliff and waterfall.

While the crowd 'oohs' and 'ahhs' at the familiar, but still impressive, spectacle. Samantha, with Hora at her side, rises up on her side of the field in the trainer's station, a fenced in elevator boosting her up enough to keep track of her Pokemon in the midst of the varied terrain.

She looks bored, and maybe a little sad. There's an identical elevator at the other side of the field for Aleksandr, whenever he's ready.

'What is with this trainer?' Al thinks to himself, as he ascends the elevator after giving Volnoy an encouraging headrub. 'It's as if she doesn't even enjoy this. And the typing here is terrible for Volnoy, Borzoi too, truth be told. I should look into getting a Fire type. Or a Flier, maybe.'

Volnoy scouts out the terrain with efficiency and enthusiasm, looking for good spots to throw an opponent, dodge an attack, or just a convenient outcropping to ricochet off for a flying kick to a certain Ghost-type's face. He then propels himself into the water, leaving the barest of ripples, before rising out on a geyser of his own making with a grin of competitive glee on his face.

The Sinnoh cuts his internal monologue short, and signals an okay to the referee. "I hope this battle lifts your spirit a little, Sam," he calls, raising his voice to be heard over the water features. He glances towards the small audience that seems to be gathering, then grips the edge of the elevator and vaults over, keeping a firm grip on the bar as he perches there, parkour style, to look over the area again.

The secretary scratches his head. "Well... alright then," seeming to steel himself for remembering the particulars of the interpol officer's visits.

[Time Sanity Saving Summary]

The first day, Shirley was visiting the staff. "Routine check-in" - Interpol doesn't exactly do routine school check-ins. This was probably the usual 'looking for weirdness' Shirley seemed to be doing.
- The "check-in" meant sitting in on an administrative meeting, so Shirley was present with most of the teachers, and maybe half of the actual administrative staff of the school.
The third day, Shirley gave a presentation to attending children on criminal gang prevention. Considering the ages of the attendees, this was obviously kept to things like "don't get involved with strange cults, people in snappy uniforms who steal, or similar. - This is a pretty standard thing, though usually given by local police. Either criminal gangs are a special consideration, its a cover for something else, or just a chance to ask the children themselves questions about local happenings without being too invasive.
- These kinds of presentations tend to be given to older children. Probably just the 10-12 year olds. Maybe significant, maybe not?

[/Time Sanity Saving Summary]

The secretary follows up by turning around his ledger and allowing Beatrix to copy the handwritten contact number she left. Unfortunately there's nothing else useful there for her to copy down, unless she'd like to jot some notes on who else has been turning up at the visitor's center, just in case.

"Oh, Officer Shirley requested a copy of the minutes of the administrative meeting as well, but she didn't pick them up on her second visit," the man says, reaching below his desk to draw up a stapled stack of photocopied papers. "Old fashioned, I know. I bet everyone but us just emails a pdf these days," he continues, sliding the copy across the desk.

"Perhaps you could take these to her? Unfortunately she didn't leave a mailing address, though I suppose we could just mail it to Interpol itself..."

~Santalune Gym ~Alex

"My Pokemon and I... don't really battle, I'm afraid," the secretary replies, still a smidgen leery of the gregarious Breeder and his huevos. She gestures at the desk. "Also, I'm working right now. I can't leave the desk in any case. So sorry."

I'm just gonna skip ahead to tomorrow morning I guess, time paradoxen and such. Marsh, does sleeping restore Jim's Voltage or is it only recovered post downtime?

Any sort of extreme rest of the sleeping eight hours sort refills you up.

The only exception would be if you are holding on to some major item or support that you bought and haven't used yet. Not allowed to sleep a few days and stock up on loads of expensive items. (This made more sense in a previous iteration of a system, I should probably write something explaining it better).

Are these things often televised? Because if so then Jim needs to make sure his match is. And he needs to page Sycamore to make sure everyone back at the Lab is watching too.
More livestreamed than televised, but same difference. Uploaded to Pokemon League servers for posterity to marvel over, etc.

~~~TIME PARADOX~~~

~ Santalune Gym ~Jim

The Junior Trainer seems to have a good handle on who to target with his scheme and, soon enough, his targeted 'movers and shakers' are rallying their in-groups and flipping out Pokegear to call up their squads for a good show...

It seems you were only at my lab yesterday - well, the day before - and here you are already challenging a Gym. Do Alola proud, and give Kalos a good show, mon ami! We will be watching on the big projector screen, cheering you on!

The other Time-Paradoxing Trainers receive Jim's text. It would be good of you to spectate his match, and cheer him on as well.

~~~/TIME PARADOX~~~

~ Santalune Arena (Santalune Gym) ~Aleksandr

Though the simulated environment is no substitute to the real thing for the Buizel's aquatically tuned senses, it's definitely enough for a Water Type to get around in style and pull a few tricks. Whoever designed this did a pretty good job.

It seems like the field is divided into the pool itself, the cluttered area of fake tree trunks, and the precarious cliffside. The waterfall might also count, but it would take a pretty incredible swimmer, or just a flier he supposes, to stay there for long without being swept down into the pool below.

Aleksandr's lift rises into place, giving him a commander's view of the arena. Leaving its sullen trainer's side, the Phantump floats gently down to hover over the pool, a thin scum of algal bloom slowly forming on the surface beneath it as it draws close. Grinning guilelessly, he offers the friendly handshake of honorable competition to its opponent as the Weasel erupts from a geyser of water.

Volnoy probably isn't that stupid, but it's worth a try.

The small audience waits with bated breath as the Ace Trainer addresses his opponent. She shrugs and...

Volnoy regards the outstretched 'hand', then looks up towards the Phantump's face for a moment. The Buizel's natural sense of superiority and his familiarity with Ghost types make it easy to disregard the suggested shake, and instead he raises his hand to his brow in salute - that should save face, while evading any potential joy-buzzer trickery. The Sea Weasel then backflips from his miniature Ol' Faithful, and dives back into the pool.

That possible wink capture's Al's attention for a moment. He hangs where he is from the elevator's railing, and fishes out his Pokédex, to scan the Phantump. That's totally allowed.

The Phantumps grin widens at Volnoy's reaction. Drips of some, no doubt foul, substance drip from his outstretched hand, impacting the water below and causing the bright green algae to darken and sink.

Thanks, But No Shanks [x]+1 Exp!One Born Every Minute [ ]

Shaking its hand to disperse the last of the gunk into the water, the Ghost Type begins to mid-air shuffle to some internal beat or another. It's not really using a move yet, its just chilling.

Rightly deciding that more information could only help this situation, Aleksandr fetches out his Pokedex, which is totally allowed. While the Ghost Type grooves, the Ace Trainer's Pokedex beeps as it brings up data.

Phantump, the Stump Pokémon. Phantump come from rotting tree stumps that have been possessed by spirits. Lonely forests are their preferred habitat.

The discussion page is currently locked, apparently because it is continually insisted on unfounded grounds that Phantump are the spirits of children who perished while lost in the woods. Obviously this rumor brings up a lot of worrying questions for everybody involved.

Possibly along more useful lines, this particular specimen seems to be a bog (heh) standard Phantump, with Grass and Ghost Typing. Phantump tend to be strong Physical Attackers, good Special Tanks, or in rare cases both. Like all Ghost Types they have access to a lot of tricky, sometimes frustrating, tactics.

"I guess..." Samantha calls out from her side. "...We didn't really agree on any ground rules. Did we?"

At the bottom of the pool, where the pond scum is making a shadow, the water boils and surges.

"So, do whatever you need to."

Thin claws lash out at the submerged Volynoy from the darkness, as the Phantump above-water chuckles harshly, eyes aglow with a purple light.

"Give it everything you have."

Samantha might be speaking to her Phantump, not Aleksandr. Worrying.

Phantump used Shadow Claw!
Volnoy took 2 damage!
Phantump Shifted to the Waterfall!

While its spectral claws do their underwater work carving at the Buizel, the Phantump backflips, disappearing in a puff of darkness to reappear hovering near the cliffside waterfall. It is still dancing. And laughing.

Aleksandr is cut off before he can finish his command as the Phantump lashes out ahead of time, and the Shadow Claws graze his Buizel. Volnoy twists and turns, trying to avoid the worst of the damage, then powers out of the pool to land on the shore. He locks eyes with the distant Stump Pokémon, and bares his teeth in a snarl.

"Get in there and crack its defenses," he then says, setting his jaw. "Then stay close and pressure its position, it wants to stay away." His partner nods his assent, and blasts into the base of the Waterfall, putting all his strength into his swimming before erupting from behind the Phantump, jaws augmented by shadowy force as the Sea Weasel attempts to capitalise on the Ghost type's probably weakness to Dark moves.

I don't edit and don't plan and don't think I just TYPE AND THE WORDS FLOW FORTH.

Also I went to eat dinner, so that post took a while. SAMANTHA'S A DIRTY CHEAT AND SHE'S GOING TO TAKE ME TO THE CLEANERS. Do I get to use Voltage or Mobility and what-not to give Volnoy dodges and extra soak vs damage etc? ;_;

Do I get to use Voltage or Mobility and what-not to give Volnoy dodges and extra soak vs damage etc? ;_;

[Maniacal GM Laughter Continues]

~ Santalune Arena (Santalune Gym) ~Aleksandr

Samantha crosses her arms and appears to be ignoring the battle.

Volnoy surges through the water and up the waterfall, tail whirling intensely as he fights the current. Slipping out of the stream of water at the right moment... the Water Type feels a hand pushed up against his chest, which immediately begins to tingle ominously...

Phantump used Toxic!
Volnoy was Exponentially Poisoned!

The lingering tingle of his opponent's touch intensifies into a slightly painful sensation, matched by the formation of a dark purple hued discoloration in his cream-colored fur on his chest.

Volnoy is Poisoned!
Volnoy took 1 Damage!(2 turns remain)

Pulling back after planting a hand on its opponent, the Phantump is struck by Volnoy's punishing bite, the powerful force of the Otter's jaws crushing through the Ghost's defenses.

The Sea Otter takes a CHUNK out of the Stump Pokémon's toughened hide.

"Now, Volnoy! Use Ice Blade, and take that ghost into the water, you'll have the advantage!" Anyone listening to Aleksandr's command would be pretty convinced that the Ace Trainer was speaking the truth, but surely he's just putting a brave face on for his type-disadvantaged partner?

Volnoy snarls an affirmative, pulls back a paw, and lets out a yell as a craggy spike of ice encases his forearm. Then he dives forwards, propelled by his tails, water siphoned from the waterfall, and gravity, aiming to shift both combatants into a more liquid environment.

"Once there, use the water to wash off the poison's effects!" he then continues, aiming to inspire Volnoy with sheer force of will.

[ Voltage spent - Shrug off that poison, Volnoy! ]

Bending rules is not something I'm good at. THE SITH DEAL ONLY IN ABSOLUTES.

"That's it, now get out of the water before that Ghost fouls the whole pool," Aleksandr suggests, swinging around on the railing to get a better look at the rapidly shifting battle zone.

Volnoy processes this, and thinks quickly. His trademarked Splash Dash would do it, but Hora's Grass typing would blunt the attack hugely. His Palm Strike could push the ghost into a tree, a rock, or the raging fires of hell, if they were available, but again. That type disadvantage. He clenches a fist, and sheaths his arm in ice shards again - if it worked before, it'll work again.

Twin Sea Weasel tails, natural water-based agility and a little bit of Pokémon power combine to propel Volnoy up at the Phantump, with an ice-enchanced uppercut carrying both Stump Pokémon and orange weaseloid to the cliffs, while Volnoy tenses for the return attack.

Turning away from its trainer, the Ghost Type is ill-equipped to handle another ice-conjuring smash from the fist of its opponent, driving the both of the pair to cling to the cliffside within the clinging mist of the waterfall.

Volnoy used Ice Punch!
Phantump took 3 damage!
It's Super Effective!
Phantump and Volnoy were Shifted to the Cliff!

On impact, the solid structure, intended to stand up to far more outright destructive battles in the course of its use, stands strong.

Slamming down on Volnoy, the vast tentacles act much like the regular shadows they were formed of, not even so much as disturbing the water beneath their punishing, phantom, blows.

In fact, the still water below allows the Buizel a glimpse of himself. His sleek, waterproof fur now shaggy and moss-colored. The fins adorning his arms now strangely leaf-like in appearance. To add insult to insult, on his head, he has a single daisy flower sticking out.